Pittsburgh Penguins reportedly tried to move top goaltender this past off-season

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Tom Banks
October 18, 2024 (5:49 PM)

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have a lineup that could carry them to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but it appears they aren't quite confident in their starting goaltender.

After a 3-2-0 start to the 2024/25 season in Pittsburgh, confidence is high that this team could make it back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but there's one big thing standing in their way. That would be the dreadful goaltending that they've seen from Tristan Jarry thus far, with the 29-year old tallying an .833 save percentage and a 5.47 GAA through three appearances this season.

The team clearly know there's an issue and there has been for quite some time, as they reportedly looked to trade him this past summer, but it ultimately didn't come to fruition as there was a major lack of interest around the league.

«The Penguins, a team source said, were willing to move him during this past summer, but other teams were not interested.»

That report comes from Josh Yohe of The Athletic, who believes the team were actively shopping him over the summer, but after signing a five-year deal worth over $5 million AAV in 2023, the market just isn't there.

Unfortunately, he hasn't improved early in the 2024/25 season either, meaning that his value is just going down, even if Yohe believes he needs a fresh start elsewhere.

«He's a perfect candidate to get a fresh start elsewhere. The Penguins aren't going to win with him,» writes Yohe on Friday.

Ultimately, at 29-years of age, Jarry's career is spiralling after a bad year last year and a dreadful start to 2024/25, so if he wants to turn things around, the Penguins may need to eat some salary to move him and move forward with rising star Joel Blomqvist alongside Alex Nedeljkovic as their goaltending tandem.